The Role of Recorded Volume of Cerebrospinal Fluid Output in Predicting Modified Rankin Scale Score at Discharge in Patients with Subarachnoid Hemorrhages (DROPSS)

Introduction. External ventricular drain (EVD) placement is common among aneurysmal subarachnoid hemorrhage (aSAH). Draining cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) from the EVD is also common, yet little is known about how much to drain, the length of time to drain, or how drainage impacts patient outcomes. Aim. The purpose of this study is to correlate amount of CSF drainage to patient outcomes, via modified Rankin Score (mRS). Material and Methods. This retrospective review of data located in a local hospital-based registry and electronic medical record. A linear mixed effects model was constructed to examine CSF drainage volume as a predictor of mRS at discharge. Results. Data from 82 patients was included in this analysis. There was no statistically significant relationship between CSF totals and mRS at hospital discharge (p = 0.3614, r² = 0.01). After controlling for age, Hunt and Hess score, and subject as random effect, there was still no significant relationship between CSF drained and mRS score at hospital discharge (p = .9042). Conclusions. There is no correlation between the total volume of CSF drained and mRS at discharge. Future research should explore CSF drainage documentation practices. (JNNN 2022;11(2):43–48) Key Words: acute care, aneurysmal subarachnoid hemorrhage, cerebrospinal fluid, external ventricular drain, patient outcomes